 |
| Visually impaired people practicing ICT |
"WE
do not wish for more people to go blind, but if that were to happen to anyone
then we would gladly welcome them to join our league," joked Mr Greyson
Lazaro, the National Chairman of Tanzania League for the Blind (TLB), during a
brief graduation ceremony for graduands of assistive technology training for
people with visual impairment.
Mr Lazaro's joke
was by no means misplaced, for as a league, they have been receiving support
from various institutions that has helped to redefine the lives of many people
with visual impairment in the country. With support from various partners and
stakeholders, he noted, people with visual disability no longer feel
incapacitated.
He added that
people with visual impairment function just like any other able bodied
individuals provided they get equal opportunities. But equal opportunities for
people with disabilities also mean access to gadgets that aid them to create a
level playing field.
Of
late, Sightsavers Tanzania, a not-forprofit organization which closely works
with TLB, started assistive technology training programmes for people with
visual impairment in the country. The first training session was held in 2011
and fifteen (15) people graduated. And lessons were learnt as well. During the
maiden programme, Sightsavers had to hire a trainer from Kenya.
It was costly,
admitted the Sightsavers Projects Manager, Mr Enock Mangasini. To redress the
matter, this year they sponsored another training session where 27 people were
taught how to use assistive technology, but instead of hiring an expensive
trainer from abroad, they used two from among those who graduated the previous
year to train the new students.
Mr Batista
Mgumba, the coordinator of the training and a lecturer with the Dar es Salaam
University College of Education (DUCE), said that the aim of the training is to
ensure that people with visual disabilities are not left behind at a time of
increasing technological advancements.
"It is our
sincere hope that this training will change the lives of all participants and
help improve their welfare and efficiency in what they because it has been
proven that technology is also becoming user friendly to people with visual
impairment," he said. The 27 students who partook in the assistive
technology training programme held at the Open University of Tanzania (OUT)
graduated in early October, 2012.
Among other
things, they were also awarded with laptops fully equipped with software to
assist blind people or those with low vision to use computers independently.
The laptops fitted with the special software were bought at reduced prices from
Freedom Electronics, a representative of Samsung in the country. Freedom
Electronics' boss, Mr Abdullah Rahim, was so moved by the training programme
that he said they will continue to work with Sightsavers and other stakeholders
to ensure that the initiative is sustainable.
He also said that
Samsung South Korea has promised to reduce the cost of the software for people
with visual impairment in support of the initiative. To grace the occasion was
Special Seats Member of Parliament (CCM), Mrs Alshaymaa Kwegyir, who said that
educating people with disabilities in the country is a viable investment that
will help in national development. She said that providing people with
disabilities proper education will make them independent and be able to support
themselves and their families.
"By
giving people with disabilities handouts it only makes them dependent and
appear like a burden to society but if we invest in educating them then we will
be making progress in efforts to bring development to our country," she
said. So what is assistive technology and how does it work for people with
visual impairment? Assistive technology is an umbrella term that includes
assistive, adaptive and rehabilitative devices for people with disabilities and
also includes the process used in selecting, locating and using them.
The technology for
people with visual impairment enables them to learn and ultimately use
Information and Communication Technology (ICT) applications independently. A
screen reader is a software application that attempts to identify and interpret
what is being displayed on the screen (or more accurately, sent to standard
output, whether a video monitor is present or not). This interpretation is then
represented to the user with text-tospeech, sound icons or a Braille output
device.
Screen readers
are a form of assistive technology (AT) potentially useful to people who are
blind, visually impaired, illiterate or learning disabled. AT promotes greater
independence by enabling people to perform tasks that they were formerly unable
to accomplish or had great difficulty accomplishing, by providing enhancements
to or changing methods of interacting with, the technology needed to accomplish
such tasks.
Speaking at the
graduation, Mr Mangasini said that it is promising that they could use students
from the previous year to train others and expressed hope that those who
benefited from this year's programme will go and spread the knowledge acquired
far and wide. Mr Mangasini was speaking on behalf of Sightsavers Tanzania
Director, Dr Ibrahim Kabole. The programme is sponsored by Sightsavers and
supported by Tanzania Education Authority (TEA), OUT and TLB.
Ms Janeth Bushiri
of Sightsavers added that they have plans to train between 200 and 300 people
with visual disabilities to use computers in the next four years and promised
to continue supporting similar training and called for other stakeholders to
support the initiative. Beginning next year, she said, they plan to have 10
people trained in how to use assistive technology for people with visual
disabilities in 10 districts of the country where TLB operates, who will be
assisting others to learn how to use the technology.
OUT
Vice-Chancellor, Prof Tolly Mbwette, said that this year's training and that
conducted last year have been an eye opener to many individuals that ICT is
possible for visually impaired individuals. "I am calling upon both
national and international organisations to facilitate training like this one.
Training like this have far reaching implications as they keep disability and
persons with disabilities high on the agenda," he said.
In
a speech read on his behalf by the OUT Deputy Vice- Chancellor (Personnel),
Prof Martin Victor, said such training helps society to widen knowledge and
understanding of disabilities and persons with disabilities in both training
and using ICT services as well as get rid of stigmatization and negative
attitudes towards people with disabilities. Mr Cosmas Mnyanyi, Coordinator of
the Assistive Technology Unit at OUT, noted that the country's education system
has for many years not taken into consideration people with visual disabilities
in terms of teaching methods.
"Pupils and
students who cannot see suffer a lot because they are in many instances
regarded like ordinary students, this affects their performances and that's why
we are keen to ensure that assistive technologies get to as many disabled
people as possible," he said. TEA Director for Finance and Administration,
Mrs Esther Abayo, vowed to continue supporting the initiative through various
fundraising activities to ensure its sustainability. She observed that it is
imperative that more and more people are reached and empowered as a matter of
implementing education for all policy in the country.
By Kilasa Mtambalike
Daily News Tanzania